How low can it go -- safely? Laura Dekker, would-be youngest circumnavatrix

Sailing is perhaps an ultimate frontier of independence, daring, and "rugged individualism". Sailors of every sort seek out challenges without many of the "safety nets" provided on shore. Solo sailors will venture thousands of miles away from other humans into the most remote portions of the globe and racers will shave the margins as they make split-second maneuvers within inches of other boats. Tales of havoc and near-carnage routinely regale visitors dockside as sailors recount stressful and sometimes disastrous moments. Outside the harbor, human frailty is pitted against the unbounded power of the ocean and this is precisely the sort adventure that many sailors crave -- and many land-creatures dread. Many sailors resist government safety urgings and and are suspicious of external regulation. Modern society's increasing aversion to risk is less evident on the watery realm of sail.

Yet, sailing takes a very different tack with regard to youth sailors. Safety requirements and permissible weather windows are more stringent for junior sailing and youth regattas. The truism of skippers deciding whether to race or not is abridged, given the general notion that young people may lack the judgment, experience, or strength of their elders. Many people were concerned about the safety of the British and American teens who recently circumnavigated the globe or express concerns about Jessica Watson, the Aussie lass who proposes her own circumnavigation, or Zac Sunderland's kid sister, fifteen-year-old Abby, who is also considering the trip.

But that is nothing to the indignation that has accompanied the case of Laura Dekker, the thirteen-year-old Dutch girl who wants to be the youngest circumnavigator of all. Dutch and British protective authorities have actually stepped in to the case and the Dutch courts have temporarily put Laura under the custody of the courts. Most people do seem to agree with the authorities that she is too young. Many people seem to fault her parents or question their motives in encouraging her.

But how young is too young, how should this be determined, and who should do the determining?

Rather obviously, many adults lack the experience, judgment, strength, mental fortitude, or equipment to safely take on the world ocean and the hazards of a circumnavigation and who would likely be a danger to themselves, to others, and a drain on rescue services. But, sailors have succeeded with small, older boats, minimal equipment, and sometimes limited experience. The world would be arguably far poorer without the stories of Joshua Slocum, Vito Dumas, Bernard Moitessier, Robin Lee Graham, Kay Cottee, Tania Aebi, Dee Caffari, Karen Thorndike, Ellen MacArthur, Zac Sunderland, Mike Perham, et al.

And, do we want the world's governments to be the ones drawing the lines for sailors? Do we still consider parents to be generally competent or do we see the currently controversial parents as proven to be incompetent to decide what's best?

The general update: Sailing World had some recent info; the Dutch authorities have taken custody and have no inclination to let Laura Dekker take off; her family is talking about trying for New Zealand but NZ doesn't sound receptive; and the girl has been sailing intensively by herself for most of her short life but recently she and her family had run-ins with authorities when soling between Holland and England.

While I want sailors to be prudent and prepared, I also can't but think of the changes in attitudes between modern parents and authorities and those of past generations.

In Arthur Ransome's old Swallows and Amazons series, set a couple of generations ago, some sailing-loving children unintentionally wind up sailing their boat to Holland in rough conditions. In the story, there are no recriminations; the young people cope well and a father arrives to help their return. All this, of course, in an era before modern safety and communications equipment with arguably less handy boats and rigs that would have been harder for young people to manage. Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons were self-reliant "free range" children to a degree that might be utterly unthinkable to modern first-world upper-middle-class parents.

Perhaps Laura Dekker's parents are viewed as frighteningly hands-off anachronisms in today's era of helicopter parents, soccer moms, and highly-adult-organized, over-programmed schedules for upper-middle-class youth. Yet perhaps children need more freedom, opportunity for self-governance and discovery, and certainly much more exposure to nature and the outdoors when far too many children are confirmed couch potatoes before they ever reach their teen years, unlike Laura Dekker.

Based on a video interview, some observers may believe that Laura lacks the confidence, fortitude, strength, or independence from her parents to succeed at sea. But, perhaps the interview should be taken with a grain of salt, since it may not be representative of her confidence or competence at sea.

Perhaps a more telling concern is the socialization that she would be missing at an age that for many youth is a critical period for becoming more mature in relating to others and cementing one's identity.

Thoughts?

Although a few thirteen-year-olds would likely have the toughness to handle a circumnavigation, perhaps Laura Dekker doesn't and the whole affair seems rather odd or circus-like.


Now, were I to see a thirteen-year-old on the telly,

* without mummy and daddy hovering nearby,
* who had already completed quite a large number of long-distance solos in rough waters,
* with excellent training and preparation including emergency medicine and safety expertise,
* and demonstrated outstanding athleticism, quick wits, enormous motivation, and demonstrated mental fortitude,
* who showed respect and realistic appreciation for the challenge,
* and was doing the circumnavigation for some highly worthy cause,
that would be another story.

At a minimum, I'd expect a voyager this young to have completed

180 days of sailing, including 80 days of voyages out of sight of land, at least 40 of these days solo, with at least one passage of minimum duration 10 days and minimum length 1000 nm,

with knowledge and ability equivalent to RYA Yachtmaster or similar, full ability to repair and jury rig all yacht systems, advanced swimming and self-rescue skills including completion of in-water drills in varying conditions, and successful completion of tests for mental aptitude and stability,

voyaging in an over-engineered, well compartmented yacht, with positive buoyancy, superior stability measures, hull and rig reinforcement, and a full panoply of well-tested safety gear and maintenance spares, tools, and supplies, with arrangements made for continuing academic progress and counseling and emotional support available.


That's all. Yes, that's a stricter test than would be applied to most adults, but the higher bar here is appropriate to the circumstances. With these requirements met, I'd be quite happy to let the thirteen-year-old take the wheel for a spin around the seven seas.

It seems obvious now, based on the information that's been coming out, that Laura Dekker has far more sailing experience than is common for her age. But does she have enough of the right kind of experience? Soloing the North Sea is a legitimate achievement, but in this circumstance it perhaps falls an order of magnitude short of being a convincing qualification.

The (Un)Safety Rant

Some grousing about idiotic boat operators made me respond with a blog comment that I’ve now expanded a bit. In the original comment, I was responding to a professional ship skipper who noted some stupid things that small craft operators do that might risk shortening their life span. Of course, stupidity on the water occurs in many places and no one type of watercraft operator has quite managed to corner the market on stupidity, though some succeed more often than others. There are all sorts of idiocy and idiots on the water.

Although it’s better to learn from the mistakes of others than to be the example (we hope) others learn from, it would be better still to prevent some of the idiocy on the water. Note also that it's impossible to make watercraft and water safety foolproof -- fools are too ingenious for that!

We see so-called skippers who have no clue that right of way rules (Colregs) exist, and others who misinterpret them wildly.

As an example, there's the guy who hears about the rights of certain fishing vessels and thinks, mistakenly, that trolling a line from his fishing pole gives him the same rights as a purse seiner or shrimp trawler.

And, limited ability to maneuver is a relative term, with judgment called for but sometimes sadly lacking. In a tight harbor or narrow channel an oil services workboat could have limited maneuverability, but it doesn't really have special rights on the open sea, whereas a supertanker's area of limited maneuverability covers some 70% of planet Earth (hint: the wet part).

Small craft skippers don't help by:
• failing to keep lookout,
• boating under various influences,
• changing course whimsically and unpredicatably (without looking or planning ahead),
• underestimating closing speeds and mis-judging approach angles,
• not realizing how invisible their craft are (visually and on radar),
• not thinking to hail on VHF,
• not maintaining or properly operating nav lights,
• not knowing how to interpret nav lights,
• ignoring channel and fairway etiquette,
• loitering in traffic separation lanes,
• not maintaining mooring and ground tackle (get my Drift?),
• not equipping their boats with radar reflectors (for near coastal) or electronic identification,
• relying blindly on GPS (even setting a course across shoals or dry land in a decidedly non-amphibious vessel),
• diverting rescue services and commercial operators by venturing into conditions for which they were grossly unprepared,
• not wearing life vests or using harnesses or jacklines in rough or limited visibility conditions, or by
• just plain old not taking early and substantial action to avoid a collision.

Does that cover the list or did I miss a few, such as the extreme idiocy of playing chicken or trying to see how close one can get to big ship, or someone deciding a big ship's wake or bow wave would be fun to play in? Darwin Award, here we come....


But wait! Here’s another groovy, trippin’ notion: try to navigate a small boat between a towboat and the barges it’s towing.

Or how about
• the drunken jet skier who slammed into a historic wooden ship?
• the sweet young thing wearing her high heels on a slippery foredeck?
• or the legions of jet skiers who think they can steer without thrust (off throttle)?
• or the ones who cut behind vessels… right into the path of other traffic?
• or the windsurfers who make absolutely no provision for cold water and go hypothermic without any help nearby?
• the guy who set up his bilge pump to work backwards?
• or the fishermen who anchor their small boat in a busy harbor or tie up to nav buoys?
• or the guys who anchor off the transom?
• the skipper and crew who don’t even realize they’ve lost their water skier until a mile later?
• or the skipper who uses a thirty-foot anchor rode to anchor in twenty feet of water?
(Hint: “Man, this is a drag.”)
• the guy charging into the slip at 10 knots… who realizes his fenders and dock lines are stowed below… and where are the brakes on this stupid thing?
• or the nocturnal hot rodder going 40 knots near obstructions on a moonless night?
• the idiots who drag a huge wake through marinas or mooring fields?
• the “teak surfers” getting their fill of carbon monoxide?
• the folks perched on the bow of a runabout bouncing in chop?
(Class, can you say “propeller strike bait”?)

Another gem: “Meestair, we don’t need no steenkeen fuel reserve!”

Or, Depth sounder? Sure we got one … it’s called the propeller and lower unit! Yep, we’ve got a very expensive depth sounder, all right. Sure is a pain to have to get a tow to the harbor and drive to the store to buy a new prop ‘cause we sure wouldn’t want the boat lockers clogged up with a spare prop, pin, and tools when we could stuff another case of beer in there.

Chart? Why bother? I know every sandbar, rock, and ledge in this bay! See! Here’s another one!

I’m not even going to try to think of all the amazing antics that happen at boat ramps. Drain plug? Straps? Parking brake or chocks? Safety chains? Who needs ‘em?!? Mast clearance under power lines? Why bother? Wait until we’re on the boat ramp to start setting up our boat for the weekend? Why not?

Many small craft operators in open water don't realize that, the earth's curvature and their proximity to the surface so limit their horizon that a fast-moving ship can "pop up" and be on top of them in a short time if the skipper is distracted or not maintaining a frequent 360 degree watch.

Some commercial operators don't help with sloppy watch standing. Fatigue and training can be a big issue on smaller commercial craft. Some operators of smaller commercial vessels seem to think that they have unlimited rights just because they're commercial. Some owners aren't too worried about how well rested or trained their crews are. And don’t get me started on the admirable standards maintained on some “flag of convenience” ships.